FOLLOWING CHRIST REQUIRES CONSTANT INTERIOR GROWTH

VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2000 (VIS) - In the Clementine Hall at midday today, the Pope received 400 faithful from Venezuela who have come to Rome on a Jubilee pilgrimage. Prior to their encounter with the Pope, they participated in a Eucharistic celebration in the Vatican Basilica.

The Lord, said the Pope in his address, "asks everyone to change their mentality and lifestyle in order to closely follow (Him) and thus face daily life according to the spirit of the Gospel. To radically follow Christ requires intense and constant interior growth. To this end it is necessary to assiduously cultivate prayer, to participate with as much frequency as possible in the Eucharist and the Sacrament of penance and to practice the Evangelical virtues."

John Paul II recalled the floods that struck Venezuela last year causing numerous victims. "From the very first, I raised prayers for the dead, asking the Lord for consolation, serenity and light for those who, amidst so much pain, were faced with the arduous task of reconstruction." He encouraged them "to stay close to those who are still suffering the tragic consequences of that situation, to remain united with one another and to be concerned for other people's destiny even if it means making sacrifices.

"The other present-day challenge is to follow the path of new evangelization. ... Evangelization will also help to ensure that the values of God's Kingdom are present in society at a time in which your country is revising its institutional and legislative structures. In this matter, it is necessary that you Christians make your voice heard so that evangelical values continue to be present in your homeland and do not, under any circumstances, lose their importance."

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A CHRISTIAN'S CALL TO MISSION IS A DUTY AND A GRACE

VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2000 (VIS) - This morning, in his address to the General Assembly of the Superior Council of the Pontifical Missionary Works (POM), the Holy Father thanked the many men and women who, "having dedicated themselves 'ad vitam' to the 'ad gentes' mission, have made missionary work the raison d'etre of their lives."

Among those present today were Cardinal Jozef Tomko, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Archbishop Charles Schleck, congregation adjunct secretary and president of POM, and national missionary directors. The four Pontifical Missionary Works are: the Pontifical Missionary Union, the Propagation of the Faith, St. Peter Apostle and the Pontifical Missionary Society of the Holy Childhood.

Remarking that today's meeting occurs within the framework of the Jubilee Year 2000, John Paul II stated that "the Great Jubilee is 'the announcement of salvation' which must be echoed in every corner of the earth, so that those who hear it become in turn witnesses and instruments for the salvation of very person."

He called missionaries "an incomparable example of dedication to the cause of spreading the Gospel," and added that "many times they proclaim the Good News and show their faith in hostile or indifferent milieux. ... God, whose generosity knows no bounds, will know how to compensate them."

The Pope's recalled the duty of those present to "sensitize Christians" to the work of mission. "The call to mission, beyond being a duty for every baptized person, is also a grace. Those who have made it the principal choice of their lives know it well.

In concluding remarks, the Holy Father highlighted the October 18-22 World Missionary Congress 2000, which occurs concomitant with World Mission Day, and which will focus on the theme "Jesus, the Source of Life for All."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed Bishop Edward M. Egan of Bridgeport, U.S.A., as metropolitan archbishop of New York (area 12,212, population 5,254,300, Catholics 3,000,000, priests 2,053, permanent deacons 264, religious 5,414), U.S.A. The archbishop-elect was born in Oak Park, U.S.A., in 1932, ordained a priest in 1957 and consecrated a bishop in 1985. From 1964 to 1968 he was vice-chancellor of the archdiocese of Chicago, from 1972 to 1985 he was a judge in the Roman Rota and from May 1985 to November 1988, he was auxiliary of New York.

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DEATH PENALTY ASKED FOR RWANDAN BISHOP

VATICAN CITY, MAY 10, 2000 (VIS) - Following is the text of the letter, published today and written by Pope John Paul II to the imprisoned Rwandan prelate, Bishop Augustin Misago of Gikongoro:

"As I receive the painful news of your detention in jail, which has already lasted 13 months, and even more as I learn of the request of the death penalty for you, I feel the need to renew once more assurances of my closeness, and that of the entire Church, to you, beloved pastor of the dear diocese of Gikongoro.

"While I pray your liberty be restored, that you may return to the loving guidance of your diocesan community, I invoke from the Risen Lord the consoling presence of His Spirit, and at the same time send you my heartfelt apostolic blessing."

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GENERAL AUDIENCE: GLORY OF THE TRINITY IN THE RESURRECTION

VATICAN CITY, MAY 10, 2000 (VIS) - In today's general audience, held in St. Peter's Square in the presence of 45,000 pilgrims, John Paul II spoke on "the glory of the Trinity in the resurrection."

Quoting the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Pope recalled that "the Resurrection of Jesus is the crowning truth of our faith in Christ, a faith believed and lived as the central truth by the first Christian community; handed on as fundamental by Tradition." The Trinity, present in the Paschal mystery, "expands over the fifty days following Easter."

"Unlike apocryphal writings," he continued, "the canonical Gospels do not present the event of the resurrection in itself, but the new and different presence of the Risen Christ among His disciples."

Mary Magdalene, affirmed the Holy Father, did not recognize Christ after He had risen, and she needed "a path of knowledge different from that of reason and the senses. The path of faith." In Galilee, the Risen Christ "conferred on the Church the mandate of announcing the Gospel, baptizing and teaching according to His commandments." The Holy Trinity is present in the baptismal formula: "baptize (all nations) in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Jesus' appearance in the Upper Room anticipated the Pentecost, when He said to his disciples "receive the Holy Spirit."

The Holy Father indicated that "the trinitarian nature of Easter is complemented by the trinitarian aspect of the profession of faith." St. Paul recalls that "no-one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit and, whoever says this, says it 'to the glory of God the Father'."

Among his greetings, John Paul II welcomed a group of Russian Orthodox pilgrims to whom he said "I thank you for your visit and I willingly invoke copious blessings from heaven on you and your loved ones."

He thanked another group of Orthodox faithful from Bulgaria for their presence and added: "I hope this pilgrimage to the tombs of Sts. Peter, Paul and the Roman martyrs may stimulate you to an ever more generous commitment to evangelical witness in your own country."

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